*Chapter 30!*
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Italy, 1999...
Prince's smile returned. - "Treasury?" - He echoed. Spotting the new tunnel which his men had just excavated out of the corner of his eye. It had been cleared using explosives, before being braced with metal supports and sprinkled with salt to keep them from slipping on the ice.
Then he remembered he had a prisoner, she already had managed to make him look like a fool once by slipping by his guards practically undetected, he wouldn't make a stupid mistake like that again.
He turned to Ivan, his large bodyguard. - "Keep an eye on her Ivan." - He ordered, as he followed one of his staff- whose name escaped his grasp- further into the temple.
Down the tunnel, Prince found himself in a newly discovered area of the stone fortress.
Behind the remnants of the ice that hadn't been destroyed or melted under the heat, were stone walls. Spotting a large door made of metal and secure with chains at the end of the hall, Prince came to the same conclusion that his men had, that this was the temple's treasury.
A few of his men had set up a small generator and other equipment such as headlamps and ice-drills, which they'd used to clear the large door of any remaining ice before they'd start attempting to actually open the door.
After a minute or so, a majority of the ice covering the door had melted into water and dripped off of the door, allowing one of his men to chip the rest away with a hammer and ice-pick.
Finally, the door was free. Revealing an intricately engraved entrance so large that the padlock in the centre of the door, which connected the four chains, it could have doubled as the head of a sledge hammer.
Luckily, he had just the tool to make quick work of it.
With a snap of his fingers, two of his employees stepped forward, carrying another one of the secure black crates they were using to transport their equipment. Pacing in front of him, Prince reached down and undid the latches and cracked the lid open.
Inside were four thermite charges, a triggering device and a pair of welding goggles.
"Get back." - He instructed his men, as he picked up an explosive pouches, which had the number 1, stitched into the fabric sleeve. Ripping the back off of it to reveal the adhesive side, he stuck it just above the point where the chains connected- which seemed to be fitted to use a key almost as big as he was- before re-joining his men at the end of the hall, where they'd moved all their equipment behind a defensive wall of extendable blast shields.
Slipping on the specially crafted goggles and a set of ear-plugs, the Rabbit lifted the triggering device out of the trunk. Which looked like a TV remote but with only four buttons and a safety cover to keep the explosive from going off accidently.
Crouching behind one of the shields, Prince pushed the button labelled 1, for a moment the hall was dead-silent, with all of the men holding the breaths in anticipation.
Then came something what sounded like bacon sizzling on an oily pan and a flash of bright light, followed by a bang so loud that the ice around that hadn't melted cracked, just because of the shockwave it produced.
His radio had come alive during the explosion, but he hadn't been able to hear it.
The lock- now nothing more than lump of molten metal thanks to the thermite, fell away. dragging the remnants of the iron chains down as it did so.
Then the large iron door, seemingly impenetrable and formidable against any attack simply creaked open in the wind.
Hesitantly, Prince and his personnel crept towards the door, as though they hadn't encountered any traps yet, the possibility of one in an ancient structure like this was always a possibility. But when he pushed one of his men through the opened door and he didn't scream of shout, he supposed it was a good sign.
Past the door, the various snowsuit clad company men found themselves as the top of a large staircase, which stretched so far down into the mountain, that at some point the only thing that could be seen was darkness.
Reaching into his belt, the Rabbit pulled out a glowstick, cracked it and tossed it down the stairs, watching as the glow of neon green grew fainter and fainter before completely disappearing from view.
Half of the men in his entourage went down before he did, scattering ice and glowsticks in front of him, while the other half stayed behind him, watching for any surprises.
After nearly five-thousand stone steps, they reached another long hallway and an even more impressive iron door which kept them from advancing any further and Prince sighed, adventuring was tedious and exhausting- he had no idea how people like Scrooge could manage to do it regularly.
With another thermite charge, the second door was open, revealing a third large hall.
Unlike the other two, this one was filled to the brim with gold and silver, covered in a light dusting of ice. It was a fortune- but Prince ignored the lot. He had already had a fortune, procured from a transport company that catered to nearly the entire globe.
No, his attention was solely on the golden staff perched on the table in the centre of the room, which was surrounded by skeletons in damaged armour.
He craved respect above all else.
There was a crunch as Prince stepped over them to reach the desk, having smashed one of the ancient skulls under his boot.
He shed his winter gloves, reaching forward with baited breath and picked it up by the leather grip, Prince pulled it towards him, only for it to resist.
Annoyed, he tried again- pulling slightly harder and again it barely budged.
Finally he spotted what was wrong. On the other side of the table, a skeleton's hand had frozen to the staff, so Duke braced one of his feet against the table and pulled it free, ripping the skeleton's hand off at the wrist and causing the rest of the body to slump backwards. Both the skull and the crown it was wearing shattering when it hit the ground.
Holding the Storm-Maker in his two hands, Prince could feel the power course through him, filling him with a sense of confidence he'd never truly felt before.
It was taller than he was and the thin layer of ice that had formed on it, melted as soon as he had touched it, the metal coating seemingly so dull and tarnished on the table, now was shining, as was the diamond at the top of it.
He had to made sure it still worked.
Raising the golden staff, he pointed it at one of his men who was too distracted by a pile of his golden coins by his feet to notice that everyone around him had scattered.
Prince felt the power surge through him as his eyes glazed over and his fur go dark.
A burst of white light fired out from the white diamond imbedded in the end of the staff, covering the room in a blanket of fog as the room grew even colder than it had been previously and the greedy guard was reduced to nothing more than an ice sculpture with an unstable base as it toppled over not a second later, shattering into pieces no bigger than ice cubes.
It was like the staff was connected to his brain and did whatever he wanted it to.
He'd done it, he'd proved everybody who had ever doubted him- belittled him- made him feel stupid. Father, Mother, Uncle Johnathan, the Board of Directors... They were wrong.
He had found Storm-Maker.
He had managed to tame its power.
He was a GOD! And them? They were just mortals.
"Gentlemen. We have what we came for." - Prince announced, staring at the diamond on the top of the staff with intrigue. - "Let's go."
"What about all these coins?" - One man questioned.
"People who win Platinum don't fuss over not being awarded bronze." - The rabbit snapped. - "But if you're so worried about a few measly coins, you can dig them out yourself. But be warned, the rest of us might have already left by the time you make your fortune!"
The threat of being left on the desolate mountain proved to put the fear into most of his men's hearts and Prince found himself returning up the grand staircase with all of his remaining staff.
Reaching the worship hall once more, where he found Ivan and most of the guards that had been stationed with him, unconscious. Only one was still awake.
The Rabbit stomped over to the Fox, as he sat with his back to the wall, his left arm clutched to his chest and blood dripping down from his uncovered snout.
"What HAPPENED?" - Prince questioned, aiming the end of his new God-like weapon at the cowering man. - "Lie and I will smite you!"
"M-McDuck!" - He stuttered out, his back tightly pressed against the wall as he tried him damnedest to escape his boss wrath. - "It was Scrooge McDuck, he attacked us!"
Prince stepped back. - "Where is he?"
"He ran when then the ground started shaking!" - He muttered, pointing over at the door by the balcony with his good arm.
"He's not getting away." - Prince spat, his voice echoing in an unearthly volume, before he slammed the bottom of the staff against the stone floor in rage, causing the temple to shake as an earthquake strained the entire mountain range, causing snow to fall and ice to crack.
The rabbit spun on his heel. - "You!" - He howled, pointing out one of his soldiers, who was wearing an oversized battery powered radio backpack.
"Y-Yes Sir?" - He responded, flinching back in fear of being encased in ice like his comrade.
"Radio in the helicopter!" - He ordered. - "Tell them to get ready to pick us up ASAP! The rest of you search every damp- dark corner of this hellhole temple until you find Scrooge MCDUCK!" - He finished, his temper flaring to the point where he had slipped back into God-mode.
His men immediately scattered on request, leaving just Prince and the goon with the communication set.
"Sir?" - The man implored, kneeling on one knee, his bag set on the ground with its antenna extended and the connected headphones around his neck.
"What!"
"Air team is wondering where you want them to land." - He said, relaying what the helicopter communications officer had told him.
Prince replied without hesitation. - "As close to the summit as possible."
With a nod, the man put the headphones back on and sent the order. - "Sir, what about the men that set up camp?" - He questioned after a few moments.
"Tell them to back up the gear. We're leaving now."
"I tried Sir, they're not responding."
"Well it's unfortunate to lose all that gear and those men, but you can't make an omelette with breaking a few eggs." - He laughed, his voice echoing through the castle like thunder.
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Clouds were gathering around the mountains as Scrooge and the others escaped from the temple's entrance. They didn't have much time before Prince and his men came after them, so they were trying to put as much space between them while they could.
The ground team they'd attacked were still lying motionless in the snow, so know the only thing that was stopping them from leaving was the harsh conditions.
The already low temperature had fallen further and a thick fog had settled over the summit, leaving the five ducks blind and shivering, trying to determine what their next move was, but very quickly the discussion had devolved into a debate.
"The man has a staff that can create weather, Scrooge. It's suicide to try and fight him." - Goldie argued, firmly on the 'do all we can to leave the mountain' faction.
"Exactly! Are we actually gonna leave a weapon like that that in the hands of a man like Prince. It's madness." - The Scotsman protested, holding the opinion that they should do all they could to stop the Billionaire and take the Storm-Maker back.
"We can't leave!" - Della interjected, joining her Uncle's side in the argument. - "Even if we tried we'd freeze before we'd reach the ground."
Leo scoffed. - "So we choose to either," - He lifted his left hand. - "Risk dying in the snow or-" - He lifted his right. - "Pursue certain death by attempting to fight a God."
The debate then devolved into senseless arguing. Leaving all but Donald blind to the trouble they were in... He heard it before he saw it. What began as whistle only a dog could hear, soon grew to a deafening volume as the mist cleared, revealing an enormous, dual-rotary bladed helicopter rising from the base of the mountain until it hovered in the air, only twenty feet above them.
As the rotation of the blades kicked up gravel and ice into the group's eyes, the large door on the side of the helicopter slid open, and another platoon of Prince Postage goons joined the fray when they descended using ropes and belt clips.
Scrooge, Goldie and the three teenagers were ready to fight off the ten or so men who had drawn their stun-batons on the group. But this plan was quickly abandoned when Prince and another twenty of his men exited the temple behind them. They were surrounded, outmanned and with the Storm-Maker in Prince's hands- overpowered as well.
"McDuck." - Prince , pushing to the front of the group. - "And others..." - He muttered, his eyes drifting over the other four, stopping at Goldie, before skipping over Della and Donald and stopping at Leo. - "You..."
Leo felt a chill run go up his spine when he noticed the Billionaire's eyes on him, and it wasn't because of the cold.
"You're the boy from the village." - He said, disbelief in his tone. - "The boy with the card tricks." - He laughed. - "I can't believe this! Getting to kill two thorns in my side for the price of one!"
Scrooge, Goldie and Donald turned their necks to look at Leo.
"What's he talking about, Lad?"
Leo hesitated. - "I may have pulled a three-queen monte on him."
Goldie chuckled, Scrooge shook his head and Donald was just confused. - "What's a three queen monte?" - He questioned.
"Basically the most simple scam in history." - Goldie explained, grinning. - "Only idiots fall for it." - She whispered, though not quiet enough for Prince to not hear.
"I'm not an IDIOT!" - He screamed, slamming the staff on the ground again, creating a gust of wind as strong as one backed by a hurricane, sending all five of the group flying backwards near the edge of the summit as well as nearly sending most of his goons toppling over as well.
"I think he's got a complex about that." - Leo groaned, as he and the others got back to their feet.
"I am not an idiot." - Prince repeated. - "I am a God!" - He shouted, emphasised by thunder and lightning crackling through the sky, courtesy of the Storm-Maker. - "And soon to be the richest man in the world."
That ruffled Scrooge's feathers. - "What do ya mean the 'Richest Man in the World'?"
"I mean with the Storm-Maker in my possession, I will control the skies- no planes, no jets- no helicopters will be able to fly without my say so... and when only Prince Packaging vehicles can fly, I will have a monopoly on international transport!"'
The five ducks stood silently for a moment, contemplating what the Millionaire had just said, then Goldie sighed.
"That is the DUMBEST plan, I've ever heard."
A muscle in Prince's jaw twitched. - "What?" - He questioned, not believing what he has just heard.
"You have a weapon that gives you the power to control the weather... and you're using it to become rich?"
"No. I don't want to be rich- I want respect. Being rich is just a means to the end." - Prince explained, his hand clenching tightly around the grip of his golden weapon.
"So you become rich by using the staff to control the skies. How are you going to control the entire earth with just the one staff? Controlling an ocean alone is near impossible with an army, let alone one man."
"I am not Man- I am a GOD!" - Prince spat.
Goldie snorted. - "I've never seen a God need a legion of lackeys to protect him."
The others were in shock at Goldie's words, she was deliberately antagonizing a man with the power to kill her in a dozen excruciating ways. Why? In situations like this it was smarter to keep the one with all the power calm, in order to minimize destruction.
But in a situation where death was near definite, what other option did they have? Even now clouds were beginning to block out the sky and a blinding breeze was beginning to build. Prince wasn't even trying to change the weather and yet, even unconsciously the staff was responding to his power.
The pieces in Leo's head finally clicked. He knew what she was trying to do.
"I didn't want to be the only person to say anything, but do you not think that the moment somebody starts shooting down their planes and claiming to 'own the sky'," - He said, making quotation marks with his fingers. - "That the Governments of the World wont band together and take you out?"
"I- uh." - Prince sputtered, only to be cut off by both Goldie and Leo's comments.
"Also wouldn't it be easier to gain respect through helping the world?"
"Yeah," - Leo agreed. - "Helping with droughts and floods, natural disasters? There's a hundred ways to gain respect that doesn't include being rich."
"Even if all the Governments allow you to continue unimpeded, you don't think the people will rise up against you like the villagers did?"
"All in all, not a very smart plan." - Leo concluded.
Goldie nodded in agreement. - "Only something an idiot would come up with it."
Finally, Prince snapped. "SHUT UP!" - He screamed, swinging the staff in front of him, throwing them all back once more, this time though they weren't as lucky as before, as the stronger force behind the staff sent them flying further back, and Goldie, after hitting the ground was thrown from the edge of the cliff.
"Goldie!" - Scrooge screamed, his voice getting lost in the howling winds that the Storm-Maler was generating. He crawled over to the edge, seeing his rival hanging on thanks to the dead roots of a frozen plant.
"Little help, Scroogie? I can't seem to find my grapple gun."
He nodded, reaching down to help pull her up, soon assisted by Donald who had also noticed her predicament. Leaving Della and Leo to face Prince.
Luckily, most of his men had started retreating down the mountain the moment Prince's anger had started to affect his control over the staff. Snow and hail fell from the sky in large clumps and the wind was still growing in power.
Out of the corner of his eye, Leo spotted the bright yellow of Goldie's grapple gun sticking halfway out of a pile of snow. If he went for it, Prince would immediately turn the staff on him, so he gestured to Della.
Della, understanding his plan quite quickly, took a step away from Leo and the grapple gun, drawing Prince's attention to her.
"Where do you think you're going?" - The millionaire questioned, his eyes having gone milky-white and his voice now raspy, due to his deepening connection to the staff.
"I'm... trying to think of an excuse?" - Della said, cringing. She had never been good at lying.
Leo leapt for the grapple hook, managing to get back to his feet before Prince turned on him. Pulling the trigger, the hook and wire fired forth wrapping around the diamond at the top of the staff.
Leo pulled towards him, but Prince held strong, not allowing it to escape his grasp.
Della wrapped her arms around Leo's waste, helping to pull, but still Prince was stronger than them.
Only when Scrooge, Goldie and Donald also joined in to help, did they manage to pull if free from him.
For a second, the Storm-Maker spun through the air, before crashing to the rocky frozen ground, diamond first. The gem cracked and all the magic that was contained within the staff exploded outwards, creating a shockwave that sent everybody flying backwards for a third time.
Stunned by the magical explosion, when the group got back to their feet, the crazed Duke Prince had already boarded his helicopter- the destroyed Storm-Maker abandoned.
Leaning out of the side door of the helicopter, Prince screamed at them.
"I'LL GET YOU MCDUCK." - He screamed, until his throat burned. - "I WON'T REST UNTIL YOU ARE DEAD- YOU AND YOUR FAM-" - Lightning cut him off, striking the second rotary set at the back at the transport vehicle, causing the engine to fail and the helicopter to fall from the sky, into the misty mountain range below.
"I guess the God's didn't like him playing pretend." - Goldie muttered, as she dusted the dirt and dust off her snow-suit.
Scrooge sighed, cracking his back. - "Well that was a disaster. Come on kids, let's get home."
Scrooge and Goldie took off down the mountain, with Donald following but giving the two adults a little bit of space, he didn't want to be in the middle of their weird flirting.
Della went over to Leo, who was crouched over the shattered staff.
"Are you alright?" - She questioned, putting her hand on his shoulder. - "I know how crazy and overwhelming today was."
Leo turned and smiled. - "I'm fine." - He said honestly, standing up. - "Just wanted to have a closer look at the Storm-Maker."
Della smiled back. - "Was it everything you expected."
"Yeah," - Leo stealthily tucked the cracked diamond into his pocket. - "I think it was."
With that, the two took off down the mountain.
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*Thanks for reading Ch.30, I hope you enjoyed this long chapter, even if I don't really like it, I just had a really hard time writing it, in the next chapter we should get back to Louie's story. I hope you enjoyed and also hope you comment, vote, follow me and read Ch.21 - MM*